It is with great sadness that the MASL Board announces the passing of our colleague and Immediate Past President, Jeff Small. Jeff who had been battling Lymphoma over the past two years lost his fight with that disease today. To Jeff's credit and perhaps his stubbornness he worked hard during these last two years to assure that MASL did not suffer because of his illness, completing his term as President and assuming where he could his duties as Immediate Past President. Jeff was dedicated to our profession
and to MASL and had shown that dedication by serving as President of the Association twice, once while under its moniker of Maine Educational Media Association and most recently after MEMA became MASL. And he is the only
person to have that distinction. Jeff also served the MASL Board as Certification Chair and we will most especially miss his expertise in that area as will his District where he had been certification chair for many years. Jeff was also very involved in the Skills USA program and was a national judge a couple of years ago at their event in Kansas City. Due to his illness Jeff had recently retired from his post as Library Media Specialist at Cony High School in Augusta.

The Board extends sympathy to Jeff's widow Anne and their son Alex and hopes to provide an opportunity to remember Jeff in an appropriate way in the new year. Per Jeff's wishes there will be no funeral or memorial service. If you knew Jeff and would like to send Anne a card you can mail it to Anne Small, PO Box 772, Waterville, ME 04903.

Like our beloved Walter Taranko and Audrey Conant Jeff was a credit to all of us who serve children in school library settings. And he will be missed.

On behalf of the MASL Board,
Edna M. Comstock
Executive Secretary

---------------------------------------------------------------

I've been quietly processing this great loss ever since Edna’s announcement and finally feel capable of speaking.
I met Jeff Small in the spring of 1998 when I signed up to substitute in the Augusta School Department during my final semester at the University of Maine at Augusta for my Associate’s degree in Library and Information Technology. He “adopted” me the minute he found out my lifelong dream of becoming a librarian. I spent the next nine years working in the Cony High School Library for Summer School. That was just the beginning. When I was hired as a Library Ed Tech just up the road at Hodgkins Middle School that fall, Jeff greeted me with a broad grin and “Welcome to the Library World!” Jeff became a wonderful resource and supporter for my many questions at both Hodgkins and also later when I was relocated to Hussey Elementary School in Augusta.  

Of course, knowing Jeff was not one-sided. He wanted things from me too. Within a year of completing my associate’s degree, Jeff began pushing for me to go back to school to become “a real librarian”.  When I did return to college in 2000 for my bachelor’s degree, Jeff served as my guinea pig more than once for class interviews or assignments. I achieved my Bachelor’s degree in 2003 but that wasn’t enough. Jeff congratulated me and then asked when I was getting my Master’s degree in Library Science in the same breath! He was such a staunch supporter that I knew I could only succeed. When I began my MLS in 2006, it was for myself AND to get Jeff to stop *bugging* me (always in a good way though).  

Jeff had a way of getting you to do things without you realizing it too.  Although I had paid my dues for several years, I was not an active member in the Maine Association of School Libraries (MASL) organization. But Jeff had other ideas. As vice-president of MASL, Jeff was looking for “fresh blood”. I attended my first MASL meeting at Jeff’s invitation in 1999 (He even drove so I couldn’t escape). By the time I left that first meeting, I had been given three things to do for the board before the next meeting! Plus the entire conversation on the ride home consisted of persuading me to serve on the MASL board. To this day, I’m not sure how it happened but I’ve never looked back.  

I shall miss Jeff’s encouragement and support personally. Professionally, Jeff’s absence will affect the entire library community. His service within MASL has provided an increased awareness of our abilities and training. His public relations efforts made school administrations and communities recognize the importance of libraries and those who devote their lives to provide information for tomorrow’s leaders. He advocated for library legislation and helped provide continuing education opportunities for library staff. Jeff connected new local authors with the library community and encouraged us to collaborate within our schools and across the state. As we consider how to best recognize his contributions, we must find a way to continue his life work.
He was a powerful influence and we shall all miss him. He (and his family) will remain in our thoughts and prayers for a long time to come.

Janet Patterson
Librarian
janet.patterson@sad59.org 
Madison Area Memorial High School
486 Main Street
Madison, ME 04950
(207)696-3395